Each answer consists of a four-letter word, several of which feature one or more X’s or O’s. That, plus the three-by-three grid, strongly suggests that this meta involves tic-tac-toe.

Since each answer is four letters long, we can divide the four letters into four independent games of tic-tac-toe. One game involves each first letter, one involves each second letter, and so forth. Doing this reveals that each game has two X’s already placed and one O, and that the next two moves (O and X) are forced by the previous placements. Take the corresponding letter from each play, with the four O moves coming before the four X moves, and the answer ELLE KING—the singer of “Ex’s & Oh’s”—is spelled out. Each of the eight possible winning lines in tic-tac-toe is used exactly once to produce a letter for the final answer.